Friction fire-escape



' (No Model.)

J. L. GARDNER.

FRICTION FIRE ESCAPE.

No 469,239. Patented Feb. 23, 1892.

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JAMES L. GARDNER, OF WVAXPOOL, VIRGINIA.

FRICTION FIRE-ESCAPE.

SIECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 469,239, dated February 23, 189.2.

Application filed July 14, 1891. Serial No. 399,479. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JAMEs L. GARDNER, a citizen of the United States, residing at lVaX- pool, in the county of Loudoun and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Friction Fire-Escapes; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,

clear, and exact description of the invention,

such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same.

The special object of the invention is to make a fire-escape which will permit persons to descend from any windows of'all the stories of a building which are in vertical alignment, as hereinafter described.

Figure 1 of the drawings is a perspective view of my fire-escape applied to .a building; Fig. 2, a perspective view of the frictionbar; Fig. 3, a longitudinal section thereof, and Fig. 4 a cross-section.

In the drawings, A represents the frictionbar, which is provided with holes a, two or more in number, with lateral open slots 0., that communicate with the holes and with the opposite grooves o also communicating with the holes a. The rope B is made fast in any preferred manner to the first or highest story of the building and allowed to extend down to or nearly to the ground.

I am aware that friction on the rope has been obtained in fire-escapes by a bar with two or more openings; but in order to put it on the rope the latter requires to be drawn up and threaded or put through the holes, while by my side slots a they may be put on from every window in vertical alignment without taking up or disturbing the rope at all. By means of the two opposite grooves a a at right angles to each hole the rope is as securely held in place as if there were no side slots at all. The side-slotted bar A may, however, be effectually used without these grooves no matter which end is uppermost. At the ends of the bar A are attached, in holes a a the snap-hooks C to support the chair D, which I has a seat d and a band d, which buckles or fastens in some way around the person.

I am aware that the friction -bar of a fireescape has been made with two vertical rows of holes on the opposite edges, the holes of said rows being connected alternately by diagonal spiral grooves,thus requiring two ropes or wires or a doubled one. These bars require to be carefully threaded through the holes and carried around in the spiral grooves. Hence they have to be strung on the rope before the fire commences, while by dispensing with one row of holes, all spiral grooves, and one of the ropes or wires, my bar can be instantaneously applied from any window along which the rope hangs and with either side 11 p.

What I claim as new is The fire-escape friction-bar A, having the single middle vertical row of holes a, connecting at one side with horizontal open slots a and at the other with vertical grooves o as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES L. GARDNER. Witnesses.-

W. C.SELDEN, O. B. ARUNDELL. 

